Help Wanted

One of the great ironies of 2020 is unfolding right now in Minneapolis. In the wake of the tragic death of George Floyd, the city of Minneapolis erupted into violent and prolonged rioting. Businesses were torched and looted by mobs purporting to honor and grieve the death of Mr. Floyd. Store shelves were stripped by mobs who had concluded that they could steal whatever they wished with impunity. Minneapolis Police precincts were attacked, and the police literally retreated in the face of the mob, apparently under orders not to resist, and abandoned their building which was then destroyed. Unofficially, it was open season on the police.

In what must be one of the most pathetic examples of the abject surrender of authority, the Minneapolis City Council conducted open public hearings focused on the call to “defund the police.” Those few officials who dared to recommend caution were shouted down. A proposal was made to disband the Minneapolis Police Department, effectively surrendering governance of the city to the mob. On June 7, 2020, nine members of the City Council pledged to dismantle the Police Department and promised to create a new system of public safety. The parameters of the new system were left unclear, but what was clear was that the Minneapolis Police Department would be taken apart, rendered incapable of the job of policing.

In the wake of the death of George Floyd, similar riots and looting broke out across America, always with the excuse that the police were, somehow, systemically racist even though in many cities, the police chief was black. With the Minneapolis City Council cowering in fear of the mob, over one hundred Minneapolis police officers have resigned, leaving a significant gap in the police ranks. City council members then demanded private security for themselves at a cost of over $150,000. Anyone paying any attention could have predicted what came next: an explosion of crime in and around Minneapolis. The new public safety system promised by the City Council members did not materialize; safety in the city deteriorated; businesses closed and people who could, moved.

So now the “Help Wanted” signs are out as the City of Minneapolis tries to find replacement police officers. The Police Chief is reduced to asking for help from the Metro Transit Police and Hennepin County Sheriff’s office. The City Council, in a narrow 7-6 vote, grudgingly approved $500,000 to be used by the Police Department to pay to rent cops from the other authorities. Not a ringing endorsement of the PD!! Query: What police officer in his right mind would come to work for the City of Minneapolis when the City Council remains fixated on the notion that the police are the problem, not the criminals. Help wanted, indeed! Good luck.

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